Sean Dyche has confirmed that skipper Tom Heaton and midfielder Dean Marney are “touch and go” for Burnley’s trip to the Britannia Stadium while adding that Johann Berg Gudmundsson is “unlikely” to feature against Stoke City.

England international Heaton, who had played 142 consecutive league games for the Clarets, was absent for the clash against Manchester City having sustained a calf injury in the heavy defeat against West Brom at the Hawthorns.

Insult was then added to injury at Turf Moor when Marney and Icelandic winger Gudmundsson both pulled up within minutes of each other before limping off just before the interval.

The pair suffered hamstring strains during the fixture, with Marney confirming: “It’s not too bad. I’ve had a bit of a nerve problem in the back or hamstring and sometimes it gets to a point where you just can’t continue.”

But the former Spurs and Hull City man seemingly has more chance of making the game against the Potters than his team-mate.

“We’ll assess Deano and Tom; they’re touch and go at the moment,” said Dyche. “Johann is doubtful and is unlikely to make it. I’m pretty sure he won’t make it,” said Dyche.

“We’ll make a decision between us because, obviously, they’ve got to be right.

“We’ve just got to take a balanced view as we always do. We’ll look at the availability of the players for the right reasons.

“These lads know their own bodies as well so it’s important that we get their feedback on it. We’ll take a view of it over the next day and decide.”

Dyche insinuated, following reversals against the Baggies and City, that he may spruce things up in a bid to secure a first win on the road this term.

First and foremost, though, the Clarets chief wants his players to translate their competitive displays on home soil to the performance levels on their travels.

“I want the players to be clear-minded and understand that we’ve got to take the competitive element that we’ve shown at home in to our away games,” he said.

“It’s been quite evident with results and performances - against the likes of Man City and Arsenal, where we’ve deserved to get something in both games.

“We’ve got to make sure that we take that mentality and build on that. Tactics are one thing but the mentality to go away from home and win games is a vital factor.”

Dyche added: “It’s not easy; people do forget that we’ve had some really tough away games. It’s the Premier League and it’s arguably the highest level of football so there aren’t any ‘givens’ by any means.

“I really want a performance that means something, that’s the key to it, and whatever it takes for the result.

“The one thing we’re looking for is a performance that is more about what we’re about. We’ll wait and see whether we can get that as a start and then you hope that performances bring results.”